In a continuing effort to improve the quality of fresh market and shipping fruits, we, the inventors, typically hybridize a large number of nectarine and peach seedlings each year. We also grow a significant number of open pollinated seeds attempting to capture desired recessive traits. The present invention relates to a new and distinct variety of nectarine tree, which has been denominated varietally as `Crimson Pearl`. The present variety was developed by us in 1992 in a cultivated area of our experimental orchard at Bradford Farms near Le Grand, Calif. in Merced County (San Joaquin Valley). It was selected as an open pollinated seedling grown from mixed seeds of unnamed white flesh clingstone nectarine seedlings from our breeding grounds. Subsequent to origination of the present variety of nectarine tree, we asexually reproduced it by budding and grafting on Nemaguard (unpatented) rootstock, in the experimental orchard described above, and such reproduction of plant and fruit characteristics were true to the original plant in all respects.
The fruit produced by the present variety is most similar to the `Bright Pearl` (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 9,359) Nectarine by producing white flesh nectarines that are subacidic in flavor, clingstone in type, firm in texture, and almost full red in skin color, but is distinguished therefrom and an improvement thereon by producing fruit that ripens about two weeks later.